Cough and Cold Medicine Abuse

      The medicines are legal, but the way of consumption up to the level it can be call abuse is not.  This contains some ingredients that in over consumption categorize them as drug abuse. The common medicines that are abuse for such purpose are: Dextromethorphan (DXM) and Promethazine-codeine cough syrup.  Both produce euphoria, since it increases dopamine.  However, the first also cause dissociative effects and hallucination and the other relaxation.

     Again is not harmful when are taken as what it is supposed to. On the other hand, if is not consume as so it harms the brain just alike an illegal drug. They are consumed in occasion mixed with soda to add flavor. However, there are other worse mixture with alcohol and marijuana. Therefore, it increases the risk.

    I never heard of such drug abuse before. However, it is not surprising as every medicine there are instructions of how much to consume. I read it was used mostly by teenager. Probably because its more appellant as such age than other drugs.  Not to mention the accessibility to get a bottle of it in our home.

Reference:

Bronstein, P. Cheap Drug Complicates Conflict in Southern Thailand. gettyimages, Southern Thailand. Retrieved from http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/eNJzKrOK-as/Cheap+Drug+Complicates+Conflict+Southern+Thailand/_Le9Enoht77

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2014, May). Cough and Cold Medicine Abuse. Retrieved April 2015, from NIDA: http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/cough-cold-medicine-abuse

"Bath Salts" Leads to Cannibalism

     The term “bath salts” has nothing to do with a bath, but the drug was used to be sold with such disguise parenting to be an actual bath salt. The appearance of this drug it is of disperses white or brown crystalline solids. It is consume in different ways, such as: inhaled, orally ingested or injected. Some cathinones found in this drug are methylenedioxypyrovalerone (MDPV), mephedrone and methylone. According to NIDA “synthetic cathinones in bath salts can produce euphoria and increased sociability and sex drive, but some users experience paranoia, agitation, and hallucinatory delirium; some even display psychotic and violent behavior, and deaths have been reported in several instances.”

     There was case where a man ate a homeless face while being on the effects of this drug. This even received a name as “Miami ‘zombie’ attack.” The man did not stop eating its “prey” even when the police came. Therefore, he was shot to dead, but he did not feel the pain, it was inhuman. Perhaps, this was caused by the hallucinatory effects this drug provides.

    I have never heard of this drug before. The first time I heard about it was from a lecture about harmful drugs in a pastoral center. They mentioned a similar case, but it was about a man who ate his roommate’s heart. Therefore, at that moment and even now it appears to be the scariest drug to me. However, it does that to everyone it consumes it, but its effects might to do so.

Reference:

Dan The Man. (2013, April 28). Bath Salts 'Zombie' Drug This video contains graphic images. Retrieved April 2015, from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTdxH-pJf5Q&oref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DsTdxH-pJf5Q&has_verified=1

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2013, November 2012). DrugFacts: Synthetic Cathinones (“Bath Salts”). Retrieved April 2015, from NIDA: http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/synthetic-cathinones-bath-salts

Simon, M. (2012, May 30). Security video shows entire Miami 'zombie' attack. Retrieved from CNN: http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/05/30/security-video-shows-entire-miami-zombie-attack/

Methamphetamine Addiction

Methamphetamine it is a powerful drug. It looks like disperse crystalline white solid. Other names for it are: chalk, meth, ice, among others. It was developed from it is parent amphetamine, which was used as an inhaler. However, the difference from this two is that the original one does get into the brain as much as the other does.

     There are many ways of using this drug such as: inhaled, injected, smoked or orally ingested. However, for getting the effects as fast as possible it is smoked and injected. These effects only last a few minutes, but it provided a great pleasure. It can be manufactured according to NIDA with “ingredients such as pseudo-ephedrine, a common ingredient in cold medications.” Therefore, even with the limits of individual purchase that has been established, it still manages to prevail.

     I love watching series and one of those it is about this drug. The name of the TV series it is “Breaking Bad” and it is about an “unsuccessful” chemistry, which with the bad news of having cancer turns to make a lot of illegal money by making this drug. At the end, it does not lead him anywhere good. In this program it presents lot of example how drugs can destroy families. Like the family of the chemistry, despite his good intentions of getting money to leave when he is gone, it brings a lot of problems to their life.

Reference:

Animeme. (2014, November 15). Do You Want to Build a Meth Lab? (Frozen x Breaking Bad Parody/Mashup). Retrieved April 2015, from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uty2zd7qizA

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2013, September). Methamphetamine. Retrieved April 2015, from NIDA: http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/methamphetamine

Heroin Addiction

     Heroin is an illegal drug. The source of it is morphine, which is processed into it. Pure heroin appearance it is of disperses white solids. This type in great quality can be snorted. However, if is impure it is usually injected after diluting it.

     This drugs it is converted to morphine inside the brain. There it affects the opioid receptors. Consequently, it causes a pleasurable feeling. However, after some of first effects it will decrease the breathing, among others. Therefore, this can lead to coma and damage the brain due to the lack of oxygen income.

     I have not seen this drug in person, but I have seen someone using drugs. I am not sure which one, but surely it was taking it by injection. The person was down some stairs at school (after school), hiding below them was diluting it and before he could inject another dose, he spotted me and ran away. This was not rare to happen, since if I looked hard enough through my school, I could perceive discarded needles one the playground. That is when it becomes a problem to other people, because it is dangerous to leave such instrument at that place.

Reference:

Hartz, M. (2010, March 6). How heroin affects your brain. Retrieved April 2015, from YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lSoyfLcwcKE

National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2014, November). Heroin. Retrieved April 2015, from NIDA: http://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/heroin